Is the refusal to answer yes/no questions in a reading a "cop-out"?

[Trogon]

Is it a "cop out" ... well, yes and no.

I generally prefer not to do "yes/no" questions with the Tarot. As others have said, this severely limits the Tarot which is best used for more in-depth looks at a situation. If someone comes to me for a simple yes/no, I break out a pendulum. On the other hand, when someone is trying to chose between two paths (ie, something like "should I do this or not"), I'll use a spread to look at the two choices.

But one other question occurs to me ... is your friend also a Tarot reader? If he is, I would gather that he does do yes/no questions. If he is not, how can he criticize what he does not understand? It's like someone complaining about how terrible a movie is that they've never seen. Though, I don't suppose that he would accept that as a valid argument.

 

[Tarotwolf]

The Universe (whatever it is that speaks through the cards) provides guidance and options thru the tarot. Most yes/no questions want the cards to make decisions. I don't think they do this. If the Universe gave "decision type" answers to our questions, it would border on impinging upon our free will rights. This is something the Universe (for lack of a better word) does not do.

 

[Dain]

@SunChariot: I couldn't have said it better! I particularly liked this: "Yes/no questions paint the world in black and white, when in reality there are many many shades of grey and all the colours of the rainbow too." Brilliant! We do tend to forget the colors of the rainbow in all that grey...

@Druid11: Yes, all the comments have been very interesting and enlightening. I can see what you mean by the analogy with Google etc (although I don't use FB, Twitter, or youtube in this manner). We collect information hoping it's correct and then decide on what to do. Same with tarot.

@Trogon: Yes, a pendulum is certainly better for a clear yes/no question.
My friend is an occasional tarot, and oracle, reader but it's more like an occasional hobby to him. He has been met and has had reading from professional tarotists, though, who were extremely accurate, according to him, with yes/no questions.

@Tarotwolf: I agree. It seems like a waste of valuable information that can be gleaned if all one asks and answers is only yes/no questions.

* * *

Tarot to me is more than just a question/answer thing. I've done reading for myself that while answering the question I had also "wanted" to point my attention to other matters that seems to touch upon my question and which I should have focused on.

It's not a matter of a spread either. One can ask yes/no questions, or more complicated and less deterministic ones, with 1 card, 3-card spreads, 7-card spreads or a spread so large and flamboyant it would put the Siegfried Follies to shame!!

More information equals more knowledge equals more wisdom (if used properly).

 

[SunChariot]

The Universe (whatever it is that speaks through the cards) provides guidance and options thru the tarot. Most yes/no questions want the cards to make decisions. I don't think they do this. If the Universe gave "decision type" answers to our questions, it would border on impinging upon our free will rights. This is something the Universe (for lack of a better word) does not do.

I agree with this part so much too!

Babs

 

[tarotbear]

Is this friend also a Tarot reader? People who have never done something think 'if he's doing it, then it must be easy,' and are totally clueless of the process. Just because you can take paint and a brush and spread paint a wall - there is a big difference in painting an 8' x 10' room, and quite another to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

 

[Dain]

Is this friend also a Tarot reader? People who have never done something think 'if he's doing it, then it must be easy,' and are totally clueless of the process. Just because you can take paint and a brush and spread paint a wall - there is a big difference in painting an 8' x 10' room, and quite another to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

He is an occasional tarot, and oracle, reader although he's been involved in various spiritual practices for many years. He does enjoy tarot but it's not a primary interest for him. He's had readings from professional tarotists though and he said the most accurate ones had absolutely no scruples about answering yes/no questions, nor did they ask him to rephrase his questions in a less "deterministic" manner.

Our debate got heated (we didn't fight, we just argued intensely but with him being a Virgo and me a Scorpio, a debate can last for... centuries and neither of us will budge ) mainly because I was taken aback by his use of the expression "cop out" for those tarotists who prefer questions outside the yes/no duality.

 

[Grizabella]

I think it's a pretty modern concept that Tarot doesn't answer yes/no questions very well. lol I even say it's not the best for doing that, but maybe we should back up a little bit and get to the bottom line by saying that it's some readers who aren't good at using the deck for yes/no answers. I tell people it's not the best for yes/no but then I'll go ahead and at least give it a try. How else can we get better at something than to just dive in and try?

Empowerment and not predicting the future is also a new concept. Fortune telling with the cards is the oldest means of using them since people started using them for something other than playing the game the cards were meant for.

 

[The crowned one]

Is the refusal to answer yes/no questions in a reading a "cop-out"?

What do you think?

I did a one card yes/no to answer this: Page of cups: depends on the question( message) and thought put into it, but the potential to answer the question correctly is always there... per the page of cups... So my answer is "yes" it is a form of a "cop-out" in the context that you asked as it pertains to your friend.

 

[Barleywine]

I don't actively shy away from yes/no questions, but I let people know that they're likely to get more than (and perhaps slightly different from) what they're asking for, like relevant indications of what, why and how, and possibly a bit of when or even who (in a general sense, of course). If necessary, I try to work with them to "sharpen up" the question so it's open to a broader spectrum of possibilities while still supporting an answer they can "take to the bank" in some sense. (You can probably guess that I prefer larger, more complex spreads )

I also let them know they're going to get more out of the reading if they're prepared to connect with and work with the forces represented by the different cards rather than just expecting things to "happen" to/for them, especially if the answer is leaning toward the negative. "Inevitability" isn't a term I use in conjunction with tarot or any other form of divination; the "human factor" is just too much of a wild card.

 

[Padma]

I think whether or not you attempt to answer yes/no questions with the cards is strictly a personal preference. Myself I think each person has a unique bond with their cards, and some bonds work well in some ways and not in others. So if you personally do not enjoy doing yes/no readings, that is fine for you; and if others can do so with their cards, more power to them. We each of us have our own way of reading, and I don't think there is a right or a wrong way.

When I do yes/no (not often, admittedly) I take out the Death card for no, and the Sun card for yes, and put the rest of the deck aside - I mix them up, top over bottom, endless times until I cannot tell which card is which; I ask my question, and I draw either Death or the Sun for my answer. If the card comes up reversed, I take that as a maybe or a yes or no but with complications, not straightforward. This method has proven pretty accurate for me. This is the only way I personally can answer yes/no types of questions. And it is rather like flipping a coin